jcomp - freepik A small guide to learn about the world of hemp and its extraordinary uses. Considered a “nutritional vaccine”, essential for those seeking wellness, today it is the star of several sweet and savoury recipes. Hemp has ancient traditions in Italy. History says so. Hemp farming was born in Italy around 1300, but numerous sources recount that it had already been introduced in Piedmont and the Po Valley by the Roman legions. But perhaps we can go back even further. Thanks to the discovery of some pollen diagrams in Lake Albano and Lake Nemi, a study conducted in 2002 by the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia showed that hemp was known more than ten thousand years ago. With the Industrial Revolution, its cultivation and processing experienced a real boom, especially in the Emilia and Campania regions. Particularly in Emilia, the volumes of hemp fibre ranged between three thousand and five thousand tons. In 1910, in Emilia Romagna, there were forty-five thousand hectares of land being used for its cultivation. In the fifties, Italy was the second largest producer, preceded only by the Soviet Union. In addition to textile use, it occupied an important role in the kitchen thanks to its healthy virtues. Since the seventies, the costs 43
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